It's no secret that there is now a fashion for Englishism and generally foreign words. There is fashion, but not still in trend, not everyone is used to it, and therefore a fair question arises: “is it neutral - how?” People may also be interested, and why not use the Russian replacement of the same word? We will answer both questions and give specific examples.
Variety of meanings
To reveal the secret of the dialect, you need to turn to the adjective, and then everything will become clear. The adjective “neutral” has five meanings, two of which are special. We focus first on commonly used ones. So:
- A neutral is one who stays away. And it’s absolutely all the same what the talk is about - the struggle on the political Olympus or the banal debate about tastes. There are people in the world who are not interested in these topics.
- The neutral subject of conversation, which does not directly concern anyone, but at the same time may be of interest to many.
- Neutral is something that does not contain either useful or harmful qualities, and does not have a beneficial or harmful effect. It is believed that as a medicine, calcium is harmless and there is no benefit from it. This, of course, is a fallacy. Calcium can be both useful and harmful, depending on the dosage, but this does not apply to our topic, but it perfectly characterizes another meaning of the word “neutral”.
- Neutral in chemistry is one that does not give any reaction.
- Neutral in physics is one that does not contain any charge.
Already relying on these data, one can understand neutrally - how is this? But for clarity, it’s better to give an example.
Pupils and time distortion
Many are familiar with the story. A schoolboy is sitting in a geometry lesson and the arrow does not want to crawl forward, towards the end of the lesson, so that the tangents, cotangents and cosines will end soon, if they are amiss. But time is merciless! It froze! Of course, this is true if the child prefers literature.
If the situation is the opposite, then a born mathematician or physicist thinks when this absolutely endless analysis of Onegin and Tatiana’s conflicting feelings for the main character will end. Time behaves equally meanly for these students - it does not want to speed up their run and bring the bell closer.
Now imagine that both students went to a biology class, and again minutes and seconds became themselves. 45 minutes is 45 minutes, not eternity. What is this talking about? Both students are biologically neutral. From this lesson they are "neither hot nor cold," but for sure you still want to go home faster. In other words, it’s clear now, neutral - how is it?
Synonym for the adjective "neutral"
As it is easy to understand, it all depends on the context. In accordance with the above values, we offer a list of replacements:
- When it comes to a dispute or political struggle, then the best definitions are: “disinterested,” “apolitical,” “indifferent,” “indifferent.”
- When it comes to the topic of conversation between people, there are no definite replacements. When there is a need to lower the degree and bring the conversation into a calm direction, then choose a “less acute” or “more general” topic.
- The third value is easier. In this case they say: “harmless”, “useless”.
- When it comes to science, it is difficult to talk about synonyms; rather, you need to think about illustrations and specific concepts of the branch of knowledge that is meant.
In any case, we hope that this will satisfy those who want to know a synonym for the word "neutral."
Why not use Russian replacements for the definition of "neutral" now?
This is a complex and controversial issue. And the point is not the fashion for foreign words, but the fact that in some branches of knowledge, for example, in physics and chemistry, the adjective “neutral” fixes a certain concept, and you cannot pick up a replacement for the latter. In this case, to explain the phenomenon, one would have to resort to commenting, and this, in turn, would make the text heavier.
By the way, this clarifies why in some sciences a certain international language was formed. In other words, in the scientific community there are many terms that were formed using tracing paper.
But back to the topic. The meaning of the word “neutral” greatly saves the speaker and the writer by its variety, and therefore is in such demand. And so, of course, our history knows examples of how people tried to forcibly Russify some foreign words and throw out with shame from the Russian language “borrowed”, “foreign”, which had long been assimilated into the language. Who needs an example, let him remember A. S. Shishkov and his campaign, as well as the sharpness of Pushkin in this regard.
What is the result? Taoist wisdom teaches: it is necessary to treat everything indifferently, that is, neutrally. "What is it like?" - the question arises by itself. Especially not upset and not happy. And language, if necessary, will cleanse itself of false borrowings, for it is a system, and it, in turn, is prone to self-organization. Therefore, it is not worth worrying about the “great and mighty”.